A Fresh Encounter With The Risen Lord 06/06/2021

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Christ's Death And Resurrection  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  41:45
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Encountering God in the difficulties of life

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I'm glad that you're here today, A lot of people to pray for.

Covid. Still won't let go with it. It's just not letting go. I know. I think I saw some stats of the date. It said about 50% of the people in North Carolina have been vaccinated. I believe so. Well, so we just need to pray for them and And just pray. Yes, Pat mentioned our government than just the things in the world that's kind of going upside down. Well, I'm glad that you are here today. We are kind of small in number today, But that's okay cuz we going to move forward and I think we have a good message today to move forward with. So we're in our series Christ death and Resurrection. and we are today coming to One of the last sermons, I'm going to preach in this series. I want to preach two more next week. We going to talk about how Christ still lives on Earth. Even though he's in heaven, and then the next week, we're going to talk about how he lives in heaven, even though he's on her through the holy spirit. So this is the third to the last one. And I really liked this message today. I'm going to read today, the same passage that we read last week and if you remember we talked about, can the resurrection change the Believers life? Well, today, the title, this message is a fresh encounter with the Risen Lord. now, when you're down and out and your life is falling apart, and that maybe you, I don't know what's going on in everyone's life this morning, but your faith may be wavering some You may feel defeated. You may be discouraged and depressed and out of heart about something in your life. Well, that's true. What you need is. You need a fresh encounter with the Risen Lord. The Risen Lord, not the crucified Lord, we're all thankful that he died for our sins on calvary's Cross, but too many of us live as if he's still in the Tomb. Too many of us Christians. I mean live as if he is still in the tune. So you need a fresh encounter with the Risen Lord. And this is what the people that we're going to read about today what they encounter because this was probably one of the lowest points in the life of the nation of Israel. And in the life of the individuals, the disciples, the women who ran to the tomb. All of Israel work. They were expecting the Messiah to come and to undo what wrong had done. And all of a sudden one day, they saw him die on a cross and they were so discouraged, they were so afraid, they were so depressed. They were just out of sorts and you can imagine how that would be, if I don't know. I'm sure many of you remember when 9/11 happened and I remember looking at the images on TV, in the people walking down that street with just sucked and smoke all around them. And they look so bewildered, they just look like they didn't know what was going on, they just seem so abandoned and all well this was something what it was like in Jerusalem for those who believed in Jesus as the Messiah because they had watched him be crucified. And he was their only hope and yet they're only hope died there on calvary's Cross. So let's read the story today and where in Luke chapter 24 and I'm going to read verses 13 through 36. And this is what the Bible says. Now Behold, two of them were traveling the same day to a village called Emmaus which was seven miles from Jerusalem to of them. So I might to of Christ disciples not to of the main 12 but just two followers of Jesus and they were called disciple. So two of them was on the road. Going to a mess in. The mess was about seven miles south of Jerusalem. And they talked together of all these things, which happen in the course, they're talkin about the crucifixion and all So it was wild, they conversed in reason that Jesus himself Drew near and went with them. So Jesus had already resurrected and this is one of the appearance is he he's making and he's making it with these two disciples but yet he drew near but verse 16 says Their Eyes Were restrained so that they did not know him. So the one that they followed, they could not recognize it. I don't know how Jesus did it, but somehow he made it to where they just didn't know who he was, maybe it's because he was in his glorified body. It may be our glorified bodies are a little different than our Earthly bodies, but whatever the matter is, it says Their Eyes Were restrained. So they did not know him. Now, this is what he said to him. Verse 70, what kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk in our so sad that word said, they're it means discouraged, depressed, disoriented, they were just out of sorts. Been the one whose name was Clippers. That's the only one. We know whose name. The other one's name is never given. And I don't remember much of a cliff Us in the Bible talking about cleophus, he's probably the first time and only time he's ever mentioned Jesus spoke with these two men whose names are never mentioned, except for one of them, the longest Of any of any commentary in the Bible that he spoke with anybody after his resurrection? But yet these men are never named in the Bible except right here, clip of one of them that just tells me that Jesus comes to the common everyday person. You don't have to, you don't have to be elite, he comes to just the common person and he spent more time with these two that we never know anything about in the Bible. Then he did with anyone else. You would think he would come to John in the Peter know, he come to two that we don't know their names that one is giving here Clippers and this is what they say. Are you the only Stranger in Jerusalem and have you not known the things which happened there in these days and he said to them what things. So they said to him, the things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was the prophet Mighty and deed and word before God, and all the people and how the chief priests and our rulers, delivered him to be content, condemned to death and crucified him. Now, what? Look at first, we want, but we were hoping All our hopes are dashed noticed that past tense. We were hoping We were hoping. That it was he who was going to redeem Israel. indeed, besides all this today is the third day since these things happened Later on in the message. Are you going to see the irony and what they just said? We thought he was going to redeem Israel. What they were saying that they were walking with the Redeemer. They did. He did redeem Israel, just not the way they expected. And then and then they say and this is the third day. You say I'll never tell him he's supposed to resurrect. The third day know, they were just speaking of matter. Of fact, it's been 3 days. Anybody's been dead for three days. They're Dead coming back. This has nothing to do with their belief, in the resurrection, they didn't believe in it and it said, it's been 3 days. It's just been 3 days and all So it says here, and in verse 20, and how the chief priests and I realize delivered him to be condemned to death and crucified him. But we were hoping that it was he who was going to redeem if indeed. All this today is the Third Day. Verse 22, yes, and certain women of our company who arrived at the tomb early astonished us. What, how did they do that? When they did not find his body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said he was alive in certain of those who were with us, went to the tomb call, Matt Peter and John and all I'm running to the tomb and found it just as the women had said. But him, they did not see. He said, there's some of said that he's risen that they met with the angels, the women did a Peter looked in the Tomb and he wasn't there. They said he's risen. But guess what? Not a single one of them. The number to fairy tale. Some beer is all it is. Then he said to them all foolish ones and slow of hard to believe in all that the prophets have spoken out, not the Christ who have suffered these things and to enter into his glory and beginning of Moses and all the prophecy expanded to them. And all the scriptures, the things concerning himself. So they're just walking down this little dirt road and all the sudden Jesus, who they don't know. If Jesus starts expounding the scriptures to them in the Old Testament, about how Christ was to be born mistreated crucified on the cross and risen the third day. That's what he was explaining to them from the Old Testament, verse 28, and they drew near to the village where they were going. And he speaking of Jesus indicated that he would have gone father and they but they constrain him saying abide with us, for it is for the evening and the day is far spent and he went in to stay with them. Now, it came to pass as he said at the table them that he took bread blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them than their eyes were open. And they knew him and he vanished from their site. And they said to one, Neither did not our heart burn within us while he talked with us on the road and while he open the scripture stuff so they rose up that very our return to Jerusalem and found the 11, those who will rid him gathered together saying the Lord is risen, indeed and has appeared to Simon and they told about the things that happened on the road and how he was known to them. In the breaking of bread. And then verse 36, that is, as they said these things. That's when Jesus himself stood in the midst of them behind the doors in the upper room and he said to them. Peace Beyond to you. Well, Jesus spent considerable time here with these two men. These two followers And I just love the story. Here is one of my favorite stories in the Bible.

He gave these men so much attention. It just reminds us that you don't have to be prestigious or you don't have to be some super duper saint for the Lord to care about you. If you are his child, he cares for you today and he wants to minister and to encourage you today especially if you feel as if your life is falling apart. He wants to encourage you. And so, we're going to talk more about that and just the moment, but these men had left Jerusalem, going to a mess. And here's another thing. If they actually thought the resurrection was true in the world, would you leave Jerusalem? You wouldn't leave there. That's, that's Jesus's home. No, they didn't believe that he was alive in their heads were hanging low. The shoulders were sagging, and they were just discussing with each other. All the depressing days that had preceded them. Their hopes had been dashed on back hill called Calvary and they were filled with sorrow and sadness. But you see their Journey here was more than just the geographical Jesus took him on a spiritual journey, he showed them that day that he indeed had redeemed Israel. He showed them that day. That he indeed was a lie. You see? This was a journey not from Jerusalem to Emmaus. It was a journey from doubt to Faith. That's what the journey was all about, and they were sad and discouraged, but it ended with joy and hope because they had an encounter with the Risen Savior. If you're here this morning and you feel like your life is falling apart, You look to the Future and you get the stress and depressed. Then, what you need is, you need an encounter with the Risen Savior. So, here's what I want to do today. I want to talk about two things, don't have two points in here. They are, I want to talk about when we encounter God and then I want to talk about how we encounter God. So the 1st is when God encounters us. So we look at this story. We can understand something of their sorrow in the Lord asked them. Why are you so sad? Well, we can come up for several reasons. And as I was studying this, these three reasons I'm going to give you are the same reasons. Why we like Joy? Why? We are so sad in our life, why we are so discouraged and defeated and downtrodden in our own lives. And here's the first one. Here's the first one here. When God encounters us, he encounters us when our faith deserts us. He encounters R Us when our faith desserts is now, these two men had heard all the reports that Jesus had come back from the grave, but yet they were still perplexed. When we don't understand, we haven't seen him, we have and all these other people say they've seen him. Where is he? It's been 3 days. Not because the Bible says, it's been 3 days, and he will come back to life. It's just been three days. Nobody dies in three days. Later, if you're after 3 days, if you're dead, you're dead. Say they were perplexed and then they remember that Peter had raced to the tomb. Hey, come away wondering, what in the world happened? Have someone stole in his body, the women had gone to the two. They wouldn't sure what to think. And then all the sudden, the Apostle started reporting that Jesus had come back from the dead. You see, all of this, seemed it just seemed like, just idle talk to them. They wanted they wanted proof and there goes my outline. They wanted proof that the Lord was still alive. That the Lord was still living. They wanted that, but they didn't have it. And what happened? Their faith started to waver, They didn't know what to believe. Well, apparently, no, one believed the disciples in these two disciples disciples on the road didn't believe either. They believe that Jesus had come back. What they wouldn't have left Jerusalem that day. As I've already said, remember Thomas when he came in the cytosol. The Lord is risen. He is back. What did Thomas say? He said, I won't believe it, unless I can put my hand in his side and let I can touch him. You see, that's what happens when Life Starts going sideways. Our Fate sometimes can desert us and we don't know what to believe, and we stopped flip-flopping back and forth and we're like, like James says, we're like or tossed about like the waves of the sea. We don't know which way to go friends, when why sometimes when life doesn't go right, that's when our faith will desert us. Think of John the Baptist. John the Baptist was in prison, getting getting ready to have his head cut off and he sent a messenger to Jesus to ask him, are you the Messiah or should we look for another? Who was the very one who introduced Jesus? John. The Baptist said he's the Lamb of God. Who does white, who takes away the sins of the world. He says, I'm not even worthy to latch it shoe straps. But then all of a sudden right there at the end of life, when Romo, still in control, and Jesus was teaching, this crazy stuff about turning the other cheek, and loving your in enemies and pray. For those who persecute you, all of a sudden, John start thing, is this really the beside is this who we are Banking and counting on this man? Who says that instead of taking over in chicken roam out, He wants to live a life of sacrifice and turning the other cheek that can't be right. So he said ask him if he's the real Messiah or not, you see what doubt we'll do. And you're here this morning and you may be doubting God in your life. Something's not going the way that you think it should go and so we start doubting God and then the clear teaching a scripture, it don't matter what it says, why? Because I'm living in my circumstances and not above my circumstances, and many others live below, I circumstances, and if things are going wrong, then what we want to do is kind of blame God and pin it on him. You see these disciples here. When we encounter God is when our faith deserts us, when you're, at the end of your rope, when you feel like you have, no hope that's when God will come to us. It's when I Faith desert. Well, there's another place when we encounter God and that is, when failure defeats us, You feel like you've been defeated by failure, do you feel like you are a failure this morning in relationships in your job, in your parenting, in your finances? You just feel like that you just can't do anything, right? That you are failure, you see? They basically told the Lord we trust in Jesus. As the Redeemer but it just wasn't meant to be. We were hoping. But it didn't happen. Look what they said in vs 19 and 20. He said them, what things they said the things concerning Jesus would know who was prophet body and dating and word before God and all the people. And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death and crucified him. He was our hope he, he was going to redeem us, not redeem us from our seeing. Now I want you to get this. They wouldn't looking for a savior to redeem them from seeing. They were looking for someone to redeem them from Rome. They were looking for a military leader, they never understood. Jesus is teaching that I have come to seek and to save the lost. They didn't understand that. They thought he had come to just undo what Rome had done and allow them to live in their own nation and Country under their own rule. Well, we would all probably think that and then I said, well, spend the third day anybody's been dead three days. He's dead. You see all their hopes and died with Jesus on the cross. They thought Jesus would be the one to rescue Israel, from Rome. And become their King just like the prophets had told, you see, they had followed his ministry, they have wondered. I'm sure how in the world this man going to escape all this opposition and threats right up to the last moment. I'm sure they thought that Jesus would somehow be miraculously. They were probably standing there and saw him on the cross. They said, something's got to happen. God's either going to open up the ground and swallow. These people up or Legion of angels is going to come from heaven and they're going to save Jesus and all of a sudden Jesus raises up his head one last time and says it is finished. You say to them, they were finished. To them. Christianity was a failure. To them their own people had failed them. Look how they said it in verse 20, how the chief priest in our rulers delivered him to be contemned the death, we got no one to blame, but ourselves we killed him. He was the savior. He was going to redeem us from Rome and our own people killed him. You see, they had no hope they looked at Christianity, they looked at Jesus's ministry as a total failure. Because he died right there on that cross and is he hung on the cross? They realize that they were going to be disappointed. And when he said it is finished, Well that was it it's over he's dead matter fact that the Greek translated verse 21 where it says we were hoping it just reflects that their hopes were gone. We were hoping but it didn't come to pass our leaders failed. I was talkin to a young gentleman one time. He went, he was in his early twenties and he had gotten married about a year and a half earlier and his wife had walked out on it. And he started recording to me how the same thing had happened to his brother and to his dad and to his granddad. He said, when you look at our family, he said it's just part of our family history. He says, we cannot control. We cannot have joy in a marriage. It always ends in divorce. That's the way he saw his life in his family because of past history. And other words Christ will encounter us when failure defeats us. And when it came to relationships, his entire family, he said was a failure, he said it will never work out. He said, I'm just like my daddy just like my uncle, the same thing happen to them. Now it's happened to me, you see, this is when we encountered Lord when he encounters us, not only When Faith deserts us like these two on the road but when failure defeats But they just had enough of it. They said this is it that we are defeated will have to live the rest of our life with Rome in control of us. Well, number three Christ, come to us, not only been fake desserts, it's not only when failure defeats us. But when our future depresses us now these two disciples had held out. Hope on that third day, that something would happen but nothing happened. They didn't believe the resurrection story. So they left the city in the spare. Our own people have killed him and now what have we to look forward to? That Rome is still going to persecute us going to tax us to death Our Only Hope Jesus was our only hope we follow them for three years and now look what happened. He says it's finished and he died on that cross all their hopes died with Jesus on calvary's Cross now. Maybe you hear this morning and you look into your future and your you're so depressed you say it my present is awful and now when I look and look into the future and see what's coming down the road, it looks no better friend is exactly at that time when you need a fresh encounter with the Risen Lord you need a fresh encounter when you were faith has deserted you when you're just waffling back and forth, when failure to find you or defeat you. And when your future, Depresses. You well, what happened in the story, these two guys couldn't have been more distraught, but all of a sudden they met this mysterious stranger. I don't know how he come along beside them over there where the crossroads, and he just met him there. The Bible does it say that Jesus initiated this conversation? Asking them? Why they were so sad? They said, well, that's cause Jesus, the prophet he was supposed to be our mighty king. He's supposed to redeem us from Rome, but he's been arrested and executed and that's the end of the story. And then they start explaining how they had heard the rumors that he was alive, but they didn't believe it. And then all the sudden you in response to all this Christ, he started teaching them and he began using the scriptures to explain why these events that transpired and what they meant, he started with the Old Testament, Moses moved to the Psalms Jesus was telling them the story of himself is what he was doing and he began answering their questions. Well, they won't know in a little while and Jesus was explaining to them until they got to their home. And apparently Jesus was going to keep going down the road and they persuaded him to come in to the house and it says that they ain't just had to me on, this wasn't communion. They were just having a meal and it says that Jesus broke the bread, With them and immediately. They knew who he was there. Not something a stranger coming into your house acting as if he's the host. He's the one that's breaking the bread in and they knew who he was, how did they know? They wouldn't they wouldn't with him in the upper room that night that he instigated the Lord's. Supper, they wouldn't want to go the 12, they're the 11th. They wouldn't they're the only time they could have ever seen him. Break bread was maybe when he fed the 5000 with the the Lowe's in the fishes, maybe they had seen that but maybe when he broke the bread, And he broke that bread and showed it to him. They saw the nail holes in his hands. Does the bible teaches that we will always see? The nail prints in his hands. And the spear in his side. They saw those nail holes, maybe and that's what it, that's what it was. But just think about the excitement that they had as they ran and told everybody, the Lord is alive. The Lord is alive. All of a sudden, their faith had not deserted them. Then all the sudden there, they had further fake, they didn't consider that Israel, was the failure. Know the promised Messiah was alive. And now when they look to the Future, they were not depressed. They they could see what Christ was going to do him. Build his kingdom on Earth. They recognized him in the Bible says that he immediately vanished and they ran back to tell everyone. Well, that's the wind. That's when God encounters us, when our faith deserts us. When failure, defeats us and when our future depresses us, but how does he do it? That's what I want to close with today. How does he do this? Well, I think we can all be thankful that he was able and willing to talk with to doubting centers that needed him the most, because we all need him this morning and this account reminds us how we can know God here to guys and thought the Lord had deserted them who felt apart, from God, that his presence was nowhere around yet in a moment time, everything changed. Well, I think the several things we can fly to our life, right here. And this is what we know, this is the how And this is simply this that God incounters us. In our own situation. In our own situation. Look at it in verse 14 and they talked together of all these things which it happened and it says in verse 13 that they were on the road traveling from Jerusalem to Emmaus.

He just come to these guys on a old. Dirt road, is what he did just out in the middle of nowhere.

That's how Christ come came to them, and that's how he comes to us. And you don't have to have, you don't have to be a Bible scholar for God to speak to you. You don't have to be in church for God to come to you. He comes to us in the everyday common. Messy situations in life. He is there to meet you. He found them along the way. They were walking along sorrowful and said in their time of need. And the Lord Jesus came right up beside them to walk and talk to him and they didn't even know it. And I think as a Believer we could also see this is true in our life is well, when you feel like your world is caving in and you wonder where Jesus is Jesus, Whispers to us. I'm right here by your side. I'm right here with you haven't. You experienced that in your life when you your faith had deserted you, or you felt like a failure, you were so depressed. He's always right there beside you. And he says, I'll never leave you nor forsake you And I've often thought him and I believe this is true that how often Christ reveals himself in encounters us. Do in tragedy in trial in trouble. That's when most people come to Christ is when they're going through some ordeal. You won't find many people come to Christ in the middle of success and prosperity. You say why not? Because it makes independent. If I have a lot of money, then I can buy what I need. I can do what I want to. I don't need Christ but if I all the sudden I have a financial situation in my life or a relationship situation, all of a sudden, I see how inadequate I am in and of myself and it drives me to Christ. This is exactly what happened to these two there. They were so discouraged and depressed. Everything is going wrong and that's when Jesus met them and you will discover the same thing in your life that he will meet you in your own situation. The breaking of bread that wasn't a communion service that was nothing but a common meal. He went to these two these guys house and just a common meal and that's where he revealed himself and that's how he does it. You don't have to do anything special. He comes to you right where you are. I can remember when my grandmother passed away, she had live with us, she died. July 4th 1988 and she was my mother's mother and she had live with us and I can remember my mom telling a story. That she was just so distraught. And one day she went over to the Grave where she had been buried about a week before and she said, she would just sobbing and crying and it was just out in the mail, the country, the middle of nowhere at this family graveyard up among the big oak trees, no one around. And she said she was crying, and she felt so alone. And she said all of a sudden a little bird flew down on the tombstone and just started singing. And she said, she could have reached and touch that bird. But she said that bird just sit there and saying, and saying, insane. Now, it is something how God will come to us in our own situation. And he'll use Wildlife, the minister to us did not something. You see that shows that he cares that shows that he comes to us in our own situation. Number two, About how he encounters us. By his own Revelation. Now look at verse 27. And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded to them. And all the scriptures, the things concerning himself. Jesus was known to these two disciples. Through the word of God. And, as he started opening up the scriptures, we two can understand God and his plan for our lives as well, because that's how he reveals himself to us. If you want to know God's will, if you feel like your fate has deserted you, you feel like failure to find you, you feel like when you look to your future, you're depressed. What you need to do is you need to open up the word of God because he encounters us in our own situation, right? Where we are, but he does it through scripture. It doesn't through scripture, you must get into the word of God. It says, he started with Moses moved all the way through the Old Testament, talking to the Messiah, he unfolded the truth, the revelation of God, and all of a sudden, they began to break upon their hearts. And they said it felt like our hearts were just burning on the inside of a friend. No one comes to God. Apart from the word of God and the spirit of God, and let me say this. There's going to be some people listen to this on Facebook and SoundCloud. If you happen to be in a regular place of worship where the word of God is not talk and applied for. And you need to do like Adrian Rogers said, you need to saturate that place with your absence, you need to get out. You need to get out of that place. If the word of God is not being taught because this is how he makes his will known to us today. You say what about dreams? And what about things like that, I'm not going to put God In The Box to say he can't speak to you in a dream. But I know this, he speaks to us through his word. He may speak to you through a dream or it may be because you ate barbecue at 10 p.m. about night. Maybe that's why you had that dream. You can't count on that. But you can count on his word and When when we start? Let me, let me, let me just say this. I know some people recently who have lost loved ones,

And they have become angry at God because God took that loved one away from them. Let me tell you what happens. when we become angry with God, the first thing we lose is his presence. We don't sense his presence in our life, because we've turned our back on him. And we will not pray. What's the next thing that we do? We quit reading our Bible. We stopped reading our Bible, we don't sense God's presence in her life. The number one, we lose his presents number to. We lose his promises in the word of God, because we won't read it because we're angry. And what's the last that we quit going to church? Let me give you, let me give you the three institutions that God has given us to encourage us and to comfort us. And to embolden us, when life is falling, apart number one is his presents. And when we get angry at we lose his present, number one is his promises which is found in the word of God. When we do not read the word of God we lose his presence. We lose his promises and friends. When we quit going to church we lose the very people who can help us and that's the people of God in church. We are taking ourselves away from the very place that God will bless us when we do this. That's exactly what is happening. So God comes to them. And what's the first thing he does? He don't give him some positive. Self-talk, he opens up the scripture to him, why? Because that's where you going to find what you need to know about God, and he opens up the scriptures. So he comes to us in our own situation, he comes to us by his own Revelation, and lastly, and will close with this. He will only come to you. Buy your own invitation. Look at verses 28 and 29. Then they drew near to the village where they were going and he indicated that he would have gone. Father and other words Jesus have been talkin to them and breaking down scripture with them and then they got to their home in Jesus indicated with guys, good talkin to you, nice to meet you but I've got somewhere else to go. I've got to be moving on. I look at verse 29, but they constrained him. Saying, oh no abide with us. It is toward evening in the day is far spent come in and stay with us. We have so much more. We want to know what the Bible say and he went in to stay with him. So Jesus acted as if he was going on. In other words, Jesus would not force himself on them. And friend is the same thing to do to your life. The fall apart. People say why here's what I'm going to do, I'm just going to let go and I'm going to let God.

What you're doing is, you're putting yourself in a position where God cannot bless you and God will not use you and he will not speak to you because you've decided I'm just going to lay around. I'm not going to do nothing. I'm just going to depend on God and let him do it. No friends. Listen, God is not going to impose himself on you. He will not twist your arm. He will not hold a gun to your head. He waits for your invitation, he waits for you to see that. You can't live life, that you make a mess of life. Then he wants you to invite him into your life, and then he will start straightening things out. But we have to invite him. He did not go into those fetus as well. I got to go fails, I said, no, no no no, please come in. And then he went in to them to be a part of their life. That's still true today. He's not going to come in and demand to be part of your life. Some people say why I've got the Holy Spirit living on the inside of me. And it, if I've got that then I'll just rely on him, so that I'll do things is Right, friend, that's not the way it works. That's not the way it works at all. Yes, you have God living on the inside of you but you also have your free will the holy spirit will never make you do. What is right? All he will do is to make you want to do, what is right. And when you don't, then you're going to feel guilty. And that's when you go to God, and you ask for forgiveness. And that's when he can start working in your life. I can tell you this. That no one will be in heaven. When you get to heaven, not a single person will be there. That has not asked Christ into their heart and Life to forgive them of their sins and to cleanse them and to give them eternal life, every single person in heaven will have done that guarantee in every single person. In today Christ comes to us exactly like he did to those two on that first Easter Wherever You Are. He comes to you, and he waits for your invitation, the friend if your life is falling apart today. Stop living as if Jesus is still in the Tomb. What you need is a fresh encounter with the Risen Lord? The one who walked with those in the fiery furnace, the one who slept beside the one in the Lion's Den. The one who said I will give you wings, like eagles, he say, then you shall run and not be weary, you shall walk and not faint. The one who says I will walk with you through the fire, it will not burn you nor with the ways over take you because I the Lord your God is with you where? They're so ever you go say that's the god that we sir. That's when he comes to us when our life is pollen falling apart, if faith has deserted you, if failure has defeated you and if your future has depressed you Ask God to meet you, right? Where you are open his word and allow him to show you exactly what you need to do and invite him into your life. That's how you'll have a fresh encounter. We got a, let's pray. Father, we do. Thank you. And praise. You and love you today for your word, Lord. We thank you for this story of these two on the Emmaus Road, Lord. So many times we can look at our own life and we can see ourselves in this story or does someone may be here today, whose faith is wavering, who feels as if as if they're just a failure in some portion of their life by someone here, that may look down the road and say I have nothing. Nothing in my future is good, everything is bad. Lord help us to have today. A fresh encounter with you, help us to know at the end of our road at the end of our hope. That's exactly where you meet us. Help us to invite you into our life to search the scriptures to see what your will and plan for Our life is. And Lord, thank you that we don't have to be a scholar. We don't have to be a pastor, we don't have to do anything like that. You come to the common folk in the common Miss of everyday life to meet us exactly where we are. We thank you for that. In Christ name. I do pray. Amen. All right. Well, thank you for being here.

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